During man-made or natural disaster the American Red Cross deploys trained personnel, to assist local officials during a time of crisis.

This was exactly why we were called to assist with the hostage situation in Marinette, Wisconsin. Within minutes of receiving the call for assistance, we deployed mental health professional to assist with the emotional toll this was taking on the families and our Emergency Response Vehicle filled with food and beverages for first responders.

Ron Haduch, Lead Red Cross Disaster Volunteer for the Marinette/Menominee area stated that he appreciated the efforts of the Marinette/Menominee and Green Bay disaster team pulling together with the people and businesses in the community.

As a member of the Marinette community Ron said “I am very proud of my community for the support that was given during this trying time. Everyone did an amazing job in keeping a stressful situation under control.”

Just like local officials, we must practice emergency situation so we are ready to respond with efficiency and maximum benefit for the community we serve. We thank our staff, volunteers and donors for their support so we are ready to respond anytime, anywhere for any reason.

Red Cross Survey Finds Three of Five People Planning Charitable Gifts this Holiday Season Will Give More Than $50, Even in Tough EconomyRed Cross offers online giving catalog to help families make charitable gifts in the name of others

Donating to charity is an important holiday tradition with many families planning to give at least $50 to charitable groups during this holiday season, according to a survey by the American Red Cross.

The national survey, taken October 21-24, found that nearly six in 10 of those surveyed plan to donate to charities between Thanksgiving and the end of the year. Of that group, 57 percent said they would give $50 or more, including 31 percent who said they plan to donate more than $100 this holiday season.

“It’s heartening to see that even in this tough economy, charitable giving remains important to people during this holiday season, and the American Red Cross is encouraging people to make a gift to the Red Cross that can save the day for those in need,” said Steve Hansen, Northeast Wisconsin Regional Chapter Executive.

During the past year, the Northeast Wisconsin Region of the American Red Cross responded to 163 local disasters – primarily residential fires. We also collected 38,404 units of blood, made 10,356 disaster education presentations, taught 45,503 individuals lifesaving skills, taught international humanitarian law to 448 students of all ages and served 676 military families.

“We are working very hard to raise money now so the Red Cross will be there tomorrow with help and hope when people need it most,” Hansen said.

Red Cross offers “Gifts that Save the Day” in Holiday Giving Campaign

With many people doing their holiday shopping online, the Red Cross is offering a range of more than 20 giving options in its holiday giving catalog (www.redcross.org/gifts) for those who want to make a donation in the name of someone else. The Red Cross also offers a Spanish-language version of the online catalog (www.cruzrojaamericana.org/catalogo).

The gift ideas include donations equal to the costs of providing food and shelter to someone in a shelter, vaccinations, blankets, and phone cards and comfort kits for members of the military.

The purchase of each gift item is a tax-deductible contribution to the overall mission of the American Red Cross. On the rare occasion when donations exceed the need in a particular area, we will use your contribution to help others where the need is greatest.

Helping Less Fortunate Important Part of Holiday Tradition

The Red Cross survey found that 78 percent of respondents said that that helping someone less fortunate is an important part of the holiday tradition for them, and more than half (54 percent) said that that donating to charity helps them get into the holiday spirit.

About a third (32 percent) said they are not planning charitable donations over the holidays, with half of them (52 percent) saying this is because they just don’t have the money to donate. The Red Cross survey found that 86 percent of respondents said their personal finances were worse or the same as last year. However, 72 percent plan to donate more about the same to charity this holiday season as last year.

Practical Gifts More Popular in 2010

The Red Cross survey found that more than a third (36 percent) said they plan to buy more useful and practical gifts such as clothing, gift cards and household items, with less than one in 10 (7 percent) planning to buy more unique and fun gifts. More than half – 51 percent – said their gift-buying would be about the same this year as last.

In addition, the Red Cross survey found that more than half (53 percent) agreed that a good way to give more to charities is to ask someone to donate to charity instead of buying gifts.

*These results are based on a national probability sample of 1,005 telephone interviews among adults 18 years and older living in private households in the continental United States, conducted from October 21-24, 2010. The margin of error for data based on total sample is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. The survey was conducted by CARAVAN®, an omnibus service of Infogroup | ORC for American Red Cross.

About the American Red Cross: The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation’s blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.

The American Red Cross Lakeland Chapter responded a house fire in the Town of Grant in Shawano County around 1:30am on Sunday, November 28. The fire displaced two adults from their home.

Three American Red Cross Disaster workers assisted the family based upon their immediate emergency needs. We provided the clients with hotel stay, monetary assistance for clothing and food. We also provided comfort kits (which include soap, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, washcloth, comb, facial tissue, deodorant, razors, shaving cream and lotion) and homemade quilts.

Red Cross volunteers were also called to assist the 75 emergency personnel on the scene with water, coffee, snacks and sandwiches to provide them with comfort and support.

Red Cross disaster assistance is free and is made possible by community donations. You can help individuals of this disaster and others by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Lakeland Chapter for local disaster relief. For information call the Lakeland Chapter at 920-468-8535 or visit www.arclakeland.org.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation’s blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.

The American Red Cross Lakeland Chapter responded a house fire in Ashwaubenon around 7:30pm on Saturday, November 27. The fire displaced two adults from their home.

Two American Red Cross Disaster workers assisted the family based upon their immediate emergency needs. We provided the family with hotel stay, monetary assistance for clothing and food. We also provided comfort kits (which include soap, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, washcloth, comb, facial tissue, deodorant, razors, shaving cream and lotion) and homemade quilts.

Red Cross disaster assistance is free and is made possible by community donations. You can help individuals of this disaster and others by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Lakeland Chapter for local disaster relief. For information call the Lakeland Chapter at 920-468-8535 or visit www.arclakeland.org.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation’s blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.

Firefighters able to contain blaze and save most of house

By Ramelle Bintz • rbintz@doorcountyadvocate.com • November 24, 2010

Fire broke out at the home of Bill and Sarah Anschutz at 5594 Daubner Lane north of Carlsville about 11 a.m. Wednesday, leaving a gaping hole in their roof and exposing the side of their house as temperatures outside continued to plummet.

Bill Anschutz said he worried what damage may come to the home if heat could not be restored because the home’s primary heat source was hot water heat fueled entirely by a woodburner in the basement.

By Wednesday afternoon, PortSide Builders was on the scene taking measurements to help secure the home and a backup gas boiler in the basement was being readied as an alternate fuel. An electrician had also been called to check wiring and Wisconsin Public Service also was called to restore power to the home.

Anschutz said he was outside the couple’s rural wooded home when his wife came out to tell him she could see smoke and called the fire department.

Flames were already coming from the chimney and heavy smoke from the roof with fire in the attic, Egg Harbor Fire Chief Steve Schopf said, when the Egg Harbor fire department arrived along with mutual aid from fire departments in Baileys Harbor, Ephraim, Gibraltar, Jacksonport, Sister Bay/Liberty Grove and Sturgeon Bay.

Schopf estimated the damage to be moderate and said the cause was a faulty chimney flue used by the woodburner. The home had three chimneys, he said, but only one masonry chimney was being used by the woodburner at the time of the fire. There was no visible build up when the flue was taken down, he said, but there was no way to know if it was cleared or cracked previous to the fire.

Both that flue, the chimney and much of the sidewall next to the fireplace was completely cut away by firefighters to contain the fire near the fireplace in the living room, he said. The fireplace was not being used at the time of the fire.

“We’ve been here 24 years heating with wood,” Anschutz said, “and I just had my chimney cleaned last week.”

The two-stall attached garage appeared normal and the family was able to stand in the right side of the home Wednesday afternoon while firefighters were still at the scene pulling insulation and tamping out what remained of an almost barren backside of the living room wall on the left side of the house.

“My guys did a good job,” Schopf said. “This could have gone the other way. They got aggressive and we saved his house and his possessions.”

Heavy smoke and water damage, he said, made the home unlivable but the family had insurance and opted to stay at a hotel. Red Cross assistance was available for both the family and emergency workers with two Door County volunteers providing water, Gatorade and lunch for about 50 emergency personnel.

The Door County Sheriff’s Department directed traffic nearby on Wisconsin 42 and Emergency Medical Services also responded to the call. The fire department cleared the scene at 2:37 p.m.

Dry turkey. Watery mashed potatoes. Family feuds. Beyond these holiday “hazards,” what makes the most trouble over Thanksgiving is a real hazard: cooking fires.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, cooking is the leading cause of home fires and home fire injuries. Unfortunately, Thanksgiving is prime time for these accidents, since many people break out the pots and pans for the holiday.

To keep your Thanksgiving safe and fire-free, follow these tips.

Mind your pan

Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling or broiling food. If you leave the kitchen even for a short period of time, turn off the stove. Unattended cooking causes nearly 90 percent of all kitchen fires.

If you are simmering, baking, roasting, or boiling food, check it regularly, remain in the home while food is cooking, and use a timer to remind you that you’re cooking.

Be alert. You won’t be alert if you are sleepy, have taken medicine or drugs, or consumed alcohol that makes you drowsy.

At least once a year, replace the batteries in your smoke alarms; every 10 years, replace the entire smoke alarm.

Make a Fire Escape Plan
If the unthinkable does happen, you want to make sure you’re prepared. Sit down with your family and make a fire escape plan:

Make sure all household members know two ways to escape from every room of your home.

Decide where you will meet outside in case of fire.

Practice escaping from your home at least twice a year and at different times of the day. Practice waking up to smoke alarms, low crawling and meeting outside. Make sure everyone knows how to call 9-1-1.

Teach household members to STOP, DROP and ROLL if their clothes should catch on fire.

About the American Red Cross:The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation’s blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.

MADISON,Wis. – On Friday, November 19 the Green Bay Packers and the Minnesota Vikings squared off in a competition to help patients in need by encouraging their fans to donate blood and platelets through the American Red Cross.

The community response was overwhelming with 1,687 donations in Minnesota and Wisconsin in one day.

“Patients who rely on blood transfusions were the winners of this friendly competition,” said Greg Novinska, CEO of the Badger-Hawkeye Blood Services Region of the American Red Cross. “Having the support of the Packers and Vikings helped raise awareness about the importance of blood donations.”

The Packers won on the field on Sunday, and Friday’s blood drive challenge was nearly a tie. In Wisconsin, donors gave five more blood and platelet donations, edging out Vikings fans.

How to Donate Blood: Simply call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver’s license, or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age (16 with parental permission in some states), weigh at least 110 pounds and are generally in good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.

About the American Red Cross: Governed by volunteers and supported by giving individuals and communities, the American Red Cross is the single largest supplier of blood products to hospitals throughout the United States. While local hospital needs are always met first, the Red Cross also helps ensure no patient goes without blood no matter where or when they need it. In addition to providing nearly half of the nation’s blood supply, the Red Cross provides relief to victims of disaster, trains millions in lifesaving skills, serves as a communication link between U.S. military members and their families, and assists victims of international disasters or conflicts.